The XFL lost half of its Week 1 audience in Week 2, but still held up relatively well given the lack of games on broadcast television.
Week 2 of the XFL averaged 655,000 viewers on ESPN, ESPN2 and FX, down about 50% from Week 1 on ABC, ESPN and FX (1.3M) and down 68% from Week 2 of the prior XFL three years ago (2.05M). Keep in mind it was the first week of the XFL — including the two prior iterations — in which no games aired on broadcast television.
Not coincidentally, it was also the first week in XFL history in which no game crossed the million viewer mark. Viewership topped out at 781,000 for San Antonio-Orlando on ESPN Sunday afternoon, followed by 678,000 for Arlington-Houston on ESPN2 later that night.
The 50% decline from Week 1 to Week 2 was sharper than that of the prior XFL three years ago, which dropped 34% from 3.1 to 2.1 million. Keep in mind that the previous XFL had as many games on broadcast in Week 2 as in Week 1 (three).
Compared to Week 2 of last year’s USFL, which consisted of two games on broadcast and two on cable, the XFL’s Week 2 audience was down just slightly (661K to 655K). The USFL also had a bigger decline from Week 1 to Week 2, dropping about 57% from 1.57 million.
The XFL also had a better Week 2 performance than the 2019 Alliance of American Football, which sank 69% from Week 1 (1.95M) to Week 2 (607K).
As previously noted, it took until the fifth and final week of play before the 2020 XFL fell below the million viewer mark. All told, only two of the 20 total XFL games that season averaged fewer than one million. The new version has now failed to hit that mark in six of eight games.
(Nielsen estimates from ShowBuzz Daily 2.28, ESPN PR; prior leagues’ Week 2 averages from Sports Business Journal 4.26.2022)
